In comparison to the original, this one is flatter and wider. I feel it's better as I just need to build up detail which I already have a plan for.

But now I need to understand the exact detail. Knowing the one side of the guard, I'm not certain if it's exactly mirrored on the other side. Although the pictures I see don't suggest it is, common sense does.

What do you think?

__________________
When in doubt, just take the next small step.
With that next step take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
When the mind is calm you realize the best is still yet to come.

Ah, I love it when cosplayers worry about details that almost no one else is ever going to remotely care about. God knows I do this, unashamedly. Woefully, I'm presently too lazy to inspect the ref photos enough to weigh in on the symmetry matter.

The wooden core looks nice and secure. That should help a good deal.

I think you might want to go back to the ref photos and take some measurements to get it a bit closer. You can either use image software to get measurements or a vernier or dial caliper (if you don't own either, even a cheap Harbor Freight one is a good investment). You work out some ratio that you can be sure of, such as the length of the hilt times the fraction covered by the character's hand compared to the length of your hand, and then you scale everything up by that ratio, keeping accounting for the concept of vanishing point in 2D drawings in mind.

Going by the reference, it looks like the blade should be less wide, and the taper between the widest part of the blade and the thinnest part of the blade should be less significant. It's a very subtle taper. Almost a straight blade.

Naturally, if you're actively choosing to go against ref photos to accentuate certain details, that's up to you as the artist, and there's nothing wrong with that.

First I will answer you're question. Yes, it's mirrored on the other side ^_^ Makes life a tad easier lol

Second, it looks a little wide to me..It should be much skinnier, but then again, you are making it to hold up unline most other this non metal swords..So this is a good thing..I held a cosplayers Kirito swords at my last con and though they were wood, they were very thin, meaning also looking correct, but they felt like I could break it just by holding it against a little breeze..

verdatum, Do you have, or know where I can fine, a diagram of how you mean? Also, I DON'T have scrap wood the thickness I need..Or any for that matter lol So I guess either way that's outts the question..Plus..I have 1" thick foam and it's WAY fragile..Any thinner would be a terrible idea..That thing would snap just picking it up lol

you have sticks on either side that are your desired thickness. In the clay world, you can just roll it flat, and the rolling pin will bottom-out when it hits those sticks. With sheet foam, you can do the same thing, just slicing a knife in such a way that it drags along the sticks.

scraps of wood of various thicknesses are available pretty cheap at your craft store or hobby shop.

Ah, I love it when cosplayers worry about details that almost no one else is ever going to remotely care about. God knows I do this, unashamedly. Woefully, I'm presently too lazy to inspect the ref photos enough to weigh in on the symmetry matter.

The wooden core looks nice and secure. That should help a good deal.

I think you might want to go back to the ref photos and take some measurements to get it a bit closer. You can either use image software to get measurements or a vernier or dial caliper (if you don't own either, even a cheap Harbor Freight one is a good investment). You work out some ratio that you can be sure of, such as the length of the hilt times the fraction covered by the character's hand compared to the length of your hand, and then you scale everything up by that ratio, keeping accounting for the concept of vanishing point in 2D drawings in mind.

Going by the reference, it looks like the blade should be less wide, and the taper between the widest part of the blade and the thinnest part of the blade should be less significant. It's a very subtle taper. Almost a straight blade.

Naturally, if you're actively choosing to go against ref photos to accentuate certain details, that's up to you as the artist, and there's nothing wrong with that.

Shaving it down won't be a problem. I just need to deconstruct the skeleton a bit and take a saw to it. Surprisingly it won't be that hard although time consuming. So it looks like I got some cutting to do.

__________________
When in doubt, just take the next small step.
With that next step take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
When the mind is calm you realize the best is still yet to come.

First I will answer you're question. Yes, it's mirrored on the other side ^_^ Makes life a tad easier lol

Second, it looks a little wide to me..It should be much skinnier, but then again, you are making it to hold up unline most other this non metal swords..So this is a good thing..I held a cosplayers Kirito swords at my last con and though they were wood, they were very thin, meaning also looking correct, but they felt like I could break it just by holding it against a little breeze..

Oh thank god, I've been driving myself crazy if it was mirrored or not.

Alright, definitely got some shaving to do.

The blade itself is double stacked balsa wood. Light and easy to cut. Although flimsy as a single piece, it's surprisingly durable when double stacked with wood glue as it's center. I tried swinging it every way I know, and short of hitting it against a rock it's pretty solid. So I don't have to worry about a breeze snapping it in half lol.

__________________
When in doubt, just take the next small step.
With that next step take a deep breath. It calms the mind.
When the mind is calm you realize the best is still yet to come.

Looks pretty good. I'd say a little wide but still good. As for the person, I'm sure they don't wanna just give you money and not respond..just hold onto it until they reply..if they already paid in full and gave you the address, just send it.